Solid-state laser

Abstract

A method for assembling an optically pumped solid-state laser having an extended cavity is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of providing a casing, mounting a TEC and a base plate in the casing, and mounting a plurality of laser components on the base plate using a UV and heat curing adhesive. Once the laser components are correctly positioned and aligned on the base plate, the adhesive is pre-cured using UV radiation. Final curing of the adhesive is obtained by subjecting the entire laser package to an ambient temperature of at least 100° C. The base plate is preferably selected to have a CTE similar to that of the laser components in order to facilitate the high temperature curing. A preferred material for the base plate is AlSiC.

1 . A method for assembling an optically pumped solid-state laser, comprising the steps of:
 providing a casing;   mounting a thermoelectric cooler (TEC) in said casing;   mounting a base plate for laser components on said TEC;   mounting a plurality of laser components on said base plate using a heat curing adhesive, at least some of said laser components forming a resonant cavity for the solid-state laser; and   subjecting said casing, said TEC, said base plate and said laser components to an ambient temperature of at least 100° C. in a heat curing step in order to cure said adhesive.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein said laser components are mounted on said base plate using an adhesive that is both UV and heat curing, and wherein said heat curing step is preceded by a UV pre-curing step for fixing position and orientation of said components on said base plate. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the heat curing step is performed at an ambient temperature of at least 120° C. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein a thermally conductive adhesive is used for mounting said TEC in said casing and said base plate on said TEC, and wherein said thermally conductive adhesive is cured in a first heat curing step before said laser components are mounted on said base plate, said first heat curing step being performed by subjecting the casing, the TEC and the base plate to an ambient temperature of at least 120° C. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the first heat curing step for curing the thermally conductive adhesive is performed at an ambient temperature of about 150° C. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein said base plate has a coefficient of thermal expansion between 5 and 12 ppm/K for temperatures up to about 150° C. and a thermal conductivity of at least 50 W/mK. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 ; wherein the base plate is made from a material having a density of less than 5 g/cm 3 . 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the base plate is made from AlSiC, and has a thickness in the range from about 6 mm to about 15 mm. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the base plate is made from AlSiC, and has a thickness of about 8 mm. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the resonant cavity has an optical path length of 10-30 mm. 
     
     
         11 . An optically pumped solid-state laser assembly comprising:
 a casing;   a primary thermo-electric cooler (TEC) attached to said casing;   a base plate for laser components attached to said TEC;   a plurality of laser components attached to said base plate, at least some of said laser components forming a resonant cavity for the solid-state laser;   wherein the base plate is made from a material having a coefficient of thermal expansion between 5 and 12 ppm/K for temperatures up to about 150° C. and a thermal conductivity of at least 50 W/mK; and   wherein said laser components are attached to said base plate using an adhesive that is both UV and heat curable.   
     
     
         12 . The laser assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the base plate is made from a material having a density of less than 5 g/cm 3 . 
     
     
         13 . The laser assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the base plate is made from AlSiC. 
     
     
         14 . The laser assembly of  claim 11 , wherein at least one of said laser components is attached to said base plate via a secondary thermoelectric cooler (TEC) located between the base plate and said at least one laser component. 
     
     
         15 . The laser assembly of  claim 13 ; wherein the base plate has a thickness in the range from 6 mm to 15 mm. 
     
     
         16 . The laser assembly of  claim 13 , wherein the base plate has a thickness of about 8 mm. 
     
     
         17 . The laser assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the resonant cavity has an optical path length of 10-30 mm. 
     
     
         18 . The laser assembly of  claim 11 , wherein said primary TEC has a substantially quadratic shape. 
     
     
         19 . The laser assembly of  claim 11 , wherein said base plate has a substantially quadratic shape. 
     
     
         20 . A method for assembling a diode pumped solid-state laser, comprising the steps of:
 providing a casing;   mounting a thermoelectric cooler (TEC) in said casing;   mounting a base plate made from Aluminum Silicon Carbide (AlSiC) on said TEC;   applying a thermally curable adhesive to said base plate;   positioning and aligning a plurality of laser components on said base plate in contact with said adhesive to form a diode pumped solid-state laser;   pre-curing said adhesive, once said laser components have been positioned and aligned, by exposing said adhesive to ultraviolet radiation; and, following said pre-curing,   thermally cure said adhesive by subjecting said casing, said TEC, said base plate, said adhesive and said laser components to an ambient temperature of at least 100° C.   
     
     
         21 . The method of  20 , wherein the adhesive is thermally cured by subjecting the casing, the TEC, the base plate, the adhesive and the laser components to an ambient temperature of about 120° C.